Online Passport Renewals Service receives National Adult Literacy Award
Press release
12 February 2019The Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade, Simon Coveney, T.D. today welcomed news that the Online Passport Renewals Service has received a National Adult Literacy Agency (NALA) award for “Plain English in the Digital World”.
The Tánaiste stated:
“We would like to thank NALA for presenting the Passport Service with an award for “Plain English in the Digital World”. It is a great achievement as the website was competing with so many deserving agencies. Using plain English is extremely important to the Department to help provide the highest level of customer service. It is crucial that we can reach all our citizens online through clear, accessible English.”
The Passport Online Renewal Service which was originally launched in March 2017, was expanded on 28 November 2018 to allow guardians to renew their children’s passports online. The Passport Service received praise for clearly presenting citizens with accessible information on guardianship and the steps to complete the online process.
The expansion has led to significant time and cost savings for both citizens and the Passport Service and is part of a larger programme of reform. The expanded service has experienced significant uptake from the public, with over 13,000 applications for child passports already received in 2019.
All Irish citizens can now renew their passports online from anywhere in the world, with the cohort of adults eligible to apply through the channel also being expanded. In addition, the cost of renewing a passport online is cheaper than alternative methods and the requirement to have photographs witnessed by a member of An Garda Síochána has been removed. The ability to apply for a Passport Card for children has also been introduced.
The NALA award follows recognition at the CX Impact Awards in 2018, where the Passport Service won the “Impact in Digital” award.
ENDS
Press Office
12 February 2019
